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‘Frankenweenie': Inside the Actor’s Studio with Martin Landau

Martin Landau is the voice of Mr. Rzykruski in Tim Burton’s “Frankenweenie.” (Disney)

Martin Landau delivered his voice performance as science teacher Mr. Rzykruski in “Frankenweenie” long before the movie’s stop-motion animators got to work.

“The thing that shocked me when I saw the film is that everything he does is what I would have done if I’d been on camera,” Landau said at a special advance showing of Tim Burton’s monster movie as part of the Hero Complex IMAX screening series. “It startled me, it was so much like what I’d envisioned.”

Watch the video to see Landau discuss his idea of good and bad acting.

“No one shows their feelings except bad actors,” said Landau, who is co-artistic director at the Actors Studio West in Los Angeles, a school and membership organization for actors. “No one tries to cry. You try not to cry. No one tries to laugh. You try not to laugh. … In a well-written script, dialogue is what a character is willing to say to another character. The 90% he isn’t is what I do for a living.”